Brought to you by Seahorse magazine, Scuttlebutt Europe is a digest of sailing news and opinions, regatta results, new boat and gear information and letters from sailors -- with a European emphasis. Contributions welcome, send to editor@scuttlebutteurope.com

A Big Day In Bermuda An epic day of racing unfolded on the Great Sound in Bermuda for the Louis Vuitton America's Cup Playoff Semi-finals as Land Rover BAR faced off against Emirates Team New Zealand. The first race got underway after a slight delay waiting for the wind to drop below the 24 knots average limit. Emirates Team New Zealand only just made the start after damage sustained to their wing after docking out. It was panning out to be a full on day with both teams sailing at the limits hitting speeds in excess of 45 knots.

The British team won the start and led Emirates Team New Zealand for five of the nine leg race, before getting low on oil which enabled Emirates Team New Zealand to take the lead, as Sailing Team Manager Jono Macbeth explained:

"These boats are so physical up until now we have been racing a five or six leg course, today was a nine legger. It is unbelieveable how much energy is required to get around these courses, unfortunately for us we got low on oil at a critical time, so our manouvres weren't as crisp as they have could been".

In the second race Ben Ainslie and his British team again won the start, before Emirates Team New Zealand suffered a dramatic capsize on the first reach, with the race subsequently being awarded to Land Rover BAR.

Ben Ainslie, Skipper and Team Principal: "The most important thing is that everyone is okay on Emirates Team New Zealand after their capsize. I think all four teams out there showed great seamanship to deal with these boats in these conditions. It was absolutely full on. We look forward to seeing them back on the race course."

"It was unbelievable racing in gusts up to 27-28 knots. Certainly, in thirty years of racing boats, it was the most full-on, exhilarating moment I've ever had. It was incredible out there.

"I liken it to skiing on ice. No holds barred; if you start to slow up and play it safe that's when it is worse. When you sail these boats fast it is very rewarding, but in conditions like today sometimes it is not possible. Days like today it is the ultimate team sport."

"Hopefully we will be back out on the water tomorrow and it's all to play for."

The current forecast for tomorrow is predicting stronger winds than today. The team are getting ready for another epic day of racing.

"All crew accounted for." And with those words, the America's Cup community and sailing fans worldwide breathed a sigh of relief.

Peter Burling's Emirates Team New Zealand pitch-poled at high-speed moments after the start, the bows digging in and boat tumbling forward, its sterns in the air, three crew pitched into the water, the rest hanging on in the cockpits.

Their opposition in the race, Land Rover BAR, immediately slowed and skipper Ben Ainslie ordered his chase boat to offer assistance.

A few moments later, Emirates Team New Zealand radioed the Regatta Director: "All crew accounted for - we're just working to right the boat now".

After staying bow down, with sterns in the air for several minutes, the Emirates Team New Zealand boat fell onto its side, allowing the team to pull it upright.

The implications for the Louis Vuitton America's Cup Playoffs aren't yet clear. The race was awarded to Land Rover BAR, meaning Peter Burling's Kiwis are still up 3-1 on Ainslie's Land Rover BAR.

Racing is scheduled to continue on Wednesday, but the forecast is again for very strong conditions. The Kiwis may get an extra day to repair their damaged boat if the wind is too strong for racing.

Nicolas Lunven (Generali) Wins Stage 1 of La Solitaire Urgo Le Figaro Crossing the finish line off Gijon, Asturias, Northern Spain at 00h 01m 16s local time (22h 01m 16s UTC) Nicolas Lunven (Generali) won the first stage of the 2017 La Solitaire URGO Le Figaro. The 36 year old from Vannes, Brittany who last won the race overall in 2009 took 2 days 07 hrs 31 m 16 seconds to complete the course from Bordeaux (Pauillac) to Gijon, a theoretical distance of 420 miles.

Now on his ninth participation in the La Solitaire multi stage solo offshore race it is the first time ever that he has won a stage. He has been one of the pacemakers since leaving the Gironde estuary on Sunday afternoon, third at the Radio France buoy at the exit of the estuary, then fourth at the midway turning mark. He pressed a little further to the west after the most northerly turn, at the Plateau Rochebonne mark south west of Les Sables d'Olonne and reaped a dividend as he taked onto starboard towards Gijon. He moved past Adrien Hardy as one of the fastest in the fleet, taking over a lead he never relinquished.

Hardy (AGIR Recouvrement) took second place in a time of 2 days 7hrs 44 mins and 39 seconds, only 13 minutes and 33 seconds behind Lunven. It is the fourth time Hardy has been on the podium of a stage. He has never won a stage before but was second into Kinsale in 2010 behind Armel Le Cleac'h - who went on to win the race. In 2013 and again in 2015 he was third twice, both times into Dieppe.

In third place, finishing at 00h 29mn 02s, Sebastien Simon took third place. The 27 year old took 2 days 7 hours 59 minutes and 2 seconds aboard Bretagne-CMB Performance, so 14 minutes and 23 seconds behind second place and 27 minutes and 55 seconds after the stage winner Lunven. It is the second time the young skipper from Les Sables d'Olonne has finished in the podium on a stage of La Solitaire, winning into Concarneau in 2015.

Needless to say it is an honour to be associated with such an event. While I was drafting the press release I had to reflect on how I got to this position of having my work used for such high calibur events. The answer is simple, it is the result of 15 years of perfecting the skill, the craftsmanship, evolving the design and presentation. Exhibiting at international shows, creating pieces for my clients throughout the world has afforded me the opportunity to get feedback and continue to strive for perfection.....to be continued !!! -- Bobby Kinsale

Many of the 30 or so old fishing boats assembling in the South East Cornwall harbour at Looe, England, UK this weekend will be 70 and 80 years old; some were even built more than 100 years ago.

But one of the stars of the biennial Cornish Lugger Association regatta is a new kid on the block - and celebrating her 30th birthday this year.

The three-masted La Cancalaise from the Mont Saint-Michel bay port of Cancale in France has often been a welcome and impressive visitor to these classic reunions of old fishing boats; glorious vessels under sail, getting together again to renew race rivalries of a bygone age.

Owned and operated by the Assosiation Bisquine Cancallaise, which aims to help as many people as possible experience the thrill of sailing under classic rigging, she was built in April 1987 as an exact replica of La Perle, the last of the original bisquines from the turn of the 1900s.

Weather permitting, at least two three-masted sailing ships will be racing around Looe Bay in a programme of events sponsored by the Hillcrest House Nursing Home and the West Looe Town Trust.

In centuries gone by, three-masters would often compete in French regattas but as Paul Greenwood, of East Looe, explains, they almost certainly never sailed in competition on this side of the Channel.

'It would have been illegal,' said the chairman of the Cornish Lugger Association. 'The only three-masters off our coasts would have been smuggling ships or the Revenue, so while the smugglers might have "raced" to get away from the authorities, you wouldn't have seen them at regattas.'

Some 20 other former fishing luggers (the name comes from their distinctive sailing rig), all over 30-ft in length, have indicated that they, too, will be attending the Looe regatta, together with perhaps as many as 20 or so smaller luggers. It promises to be some spectacle.

Skunked at the J/70 European Championship The weather has won the first battle at the 2017 J/70 European Championship. Principal Race Officer, Stuart Childerley, and his team, braved the conditions to monitor the situation on the race course and relayed their updates to competitors ashore, using a closed user group via cell phone. However at 13:30 BST, they called off racing for the day. The wind speed had barely dropped below 25 knots, gusting over 30, and after two days of strong winds, the sea state was significant. Tomorrow's forecast (Wednesday 7 June) looks more positive with a breezy 20 knots likely to provide some thrilling action at the J/70 European Championship.

North Sails 3Di Technology Debuts In Small Boat One Design North Sails is proud to introduce 3Di technology to the Melges 20 class. North Sails 3Di has received unrivaled success in Grand Prix inshore, offshore, and superyacht markets; adapting 3Di to one design classes like the Melges 20 is proof of North's commitment to providing all sailors with advanced sails.

"For the Melges 20 we have focused on a bespoke tape layout using North Sails 3Di RACE; Aramid/Dyneema sails developed to meet the demands of smaller boats," said Tim Healy, President of North Sails One Design.

Cowes Week Ltd, organiser of the world's best-known sailing regatta and highlight of the British Sporting Summer, is delighted to announce that Volvo Car UK will be continuing its support as Official Vehicle Partner of the famous event in 2017.

Volvo has been an official sponsor of Cowes Week since 2013 and so the new agreement marks an extension of the existing relationship.

The company has been a key sponsor of sailing in Britain since 1999 and has long been associated with the sport across the globe. It has held agreements with the British Sailing Team and the World Match Racing Tour, among other organisations, however its best known sailing investment is probably its title sponsorship of the Volvo Ocean Race, the world's most famous round-the-world yacht race.

St. Francis Yacht Club, recognized internationally for its impeccable venue and demanding regatta schedule, has hired Jennifer Lancaster as the Race Director for its robust program.

Jennifer has been a leader in the sport of sailing her entire career, and is wrapping up a 15-year tenure at Newport Harbor Yacht Club in Newport Beach, CA. There, Jennifer oversaw an expansive race and junior program that hosted regattas across all racing disciplines and also offered meaningful sailing opportunities to the club's members. She has been passionate about developing the match-race and team-race elements of the sport, demonstrated by her organizational prowess at the Baldwin Cup, NHYC's keystone event.

Jennifer joins the St. Francis Yacht Club in the heart of its regatta season. The Club hosts 125 days of sailing a year, with most of its major events and championships occurring in late summer and autumn. Immediately upon joining, Jennifer and her team will run the J/70 PCCs (July 14-16), Hydrofoil Kiting PCCs (August 2-6), J/111 Worlds (August 22-27), Ronstan Bridge to Bridge (August 31) and Rolex Big Boat Series (September 14-17), among others.

Germany's second largest production builder, HanseYachts AG, reported continued progress for the Group's 2017 financial results with gains in turnover, orders and profits during the third quarter ended March 31. Hanse's brand portfolio includes Hanse, Moody, Dehler, Fjord and Sealine, with models ranging from 29ft to 67ft.

Turnover for the period was €39m, up 31% over the same period in 2016. New orders for the three months were up 8% in volume and 7% in value, compared to last year. Net income (after taxes) was positive at €0.7m, compared to €0.2m last year.

With cumulative net income (after taxes) of €3.7m for the first nine months of 2017 (compared to -€1.0m last year) Hanse said it expects the positive trend to continue, achieving a year-end profit for the Group for the first time in eight years. The company also noted a significant increase in cash flow due to better operating results, up to €6.4m from €2.1m a year ago.

Earlier this month, Hanse announced it would begin marketing catamarans produced by French builder Privilege Marine, in conjunction with the acquisition of a majority shareholding in Privilege by Aurelius Equity, Hanse's parent company. Hanse will also cooperate with Privilege on production and development. In total, Hanse said its committed funds for investments in tangible assets for new models and other assets across the Group total €3.9m for the current year.

After receiving the prestigious Concept Award at the International Yacht & Aviation Awards 2017 less than a week ago, Shaun Carkeek has confirmed that plans to build the world's largest composite sailing superyacht are already advancing.

At 300ft, the Carkeek C 300 will be easily the largest boat of its kind ever constructed. It seems destined to herald a new age in sailing superyachts.

"No one has ever built a composite boat this size - I'm looking forward to building it," Carkeek said. "The genesis of the idea for the C 300 started with an owner who was considering a much larger, state-of-the-art sailing yacht. Now, I'm talking to one of the best builders in the world about how to build it and create a team around the project."

The largest composite boat ever built is the Hetairos, which is just over 200ft and was launched in 2011. "We're putting another 100ft onto that," Carkeek said. "It's a massive challenge, it's completely reshaping the industry. The boat has a new edge to it, not only through the size, but the design, the way the living spaces interact, the performance of the yacht, the new systems and technology and how these aspects work together. We're trying to make a 300ft yacht feel, perform and handle like a 100ft yacht".

"It's a megayacht for a true sailing enthusiast and very special kind of owner. It's the size of ship but it's a high-performance global cruising yacht capable of incredible average speeds of over 30 knots. In terms of the style concept, there is a timeless quality, but it has to have that futuristic twist because a boat like this will take no less than four years to build. We have that vision of the future."

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AkzoNobel will be the official coatings supplier to the Volvo Ocean Race Boatyard in 2017-18, after signing a deal to ensure that the fleet of Volvo Ocean 65 racing yachts will be coated with the company's International and Awlgrip range of products

The competing boats - including team AkzoNobel's brand new Volvo Ocean 65 - have already been coated with Awlgrip products, while the keel on each boat is protected with International coatings.

The boats that competed in the 2014-15 edition have been through a million-euros-per-boat refit process at The Boatyard shared service centre in Lisbon. Team AkzoNobel's newly built Volvo Ocean 65 has also received its final fitout at the Lisbon facility.

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